KOLKATA: A couple in their early 70s was found hanging from the ceiling fans in separate rooms of their two-storey house in Konnagar on Sunday morning. Dipak Sarkar and his wife were both retired state government officials and lived on SC Chatterjee Street with their only son Dibyendu. It was Dibyendu who found the bodies around 7am.
Police said Dipak, a retired upper division clerk at state employment exchange, was found in his ground-floor bedroom while his wife Bhabani, a former upper division clerk at state rent control board, was in the prayer room. “Prima facie, it looks like a double suicide, but we have sent the bodies for post-mortem to find the exact time and cause of death. It doesn’t look like the family had any financial trouble. But we are checking if they were depressed because of some family dispute. We are questioning the son, neighbours and relatives,” said an officer.
Police said Dibyendu got married two years ago but lived apart from his wife, which used to bother the elderly couple. Dibyendu also had to close his transport business during the lockdown and had recently started a business of food delivery in the neighbourhood.
“They were a happy and gentle couple. They never seemed to have any problem in the family. I have no clue what could have led them to end their lives,” said Bappaditya Chatterjee, chairman of Konnagar Municipality.